Long Haul
by Wind Wanderer
Summary: Cole never could get over that amazing and insane family. Although he could not get back in, he could watch. It suprised him how he could feel like and Uncle to the self sacrificing nephew Chris. Non Changed future with Evil Wyatt.


I would like to start off by saying that this is my own idea that popped up. I am ignoring curtain events from the show because some of them probably did not happen in the possible future of season six. And since many of the Cole fans felt a little cheated that Phoebe got with Coop instead, I offer you a look at Cole being a bigger part of the family.

So here we go, I own nothing but a stick of gum. Enjoy.

* * *

Cole sat in on a secluded bench, watching the occupants of the park. The sun was warm as the birds cried out their pleasure along with the laugh of children. None of this interested the half demon, as his eyes were trained on a small group sitting under an oak tree. Two boys ran around, their hectic chase gaining laughs from the women and men sitting on a blanket. A rare day this was, Cole thought as the younger of the boys fell.

It was rare that the Halliwells could have such as calm day.

Some might wonder if Cole was clinging to the past, or just a stalker, as he watched the family which he had once been a part of. With complete honesty, the ex-Source did not care what he was considered. He had been doing this for a while know, just watching. Cole glanced at Phoebe, who leaned against her husband with their daughter in her arms. That could have been Cole at one point, but the man knew it would never be again. He had worked too hard to get Phoebe to move on, to trust in love again, to try and get her back. But he still felt the pull of that family.

Cole had to smirk, once the Halliwell family got under your skin, there was no going back.

So here he was, watching their lives pass along. At times like these, Cole offered small favors that the Charmed Ones never knew about. He was the one that allowed the girls to have the sparse moments of calm. He could not offer much, if he did too much, the women could get suspicious. But he could destroy small threats, the pesky ones that showed up at the most inopportune moments in a foolish attempt to make a name for themselves, and breaking up peaceful times like this. But these small moments were worth it, seeing his family happy in the center of the turmoil of their magical lives.

Lost in these thoughts, Cole did not notice the small body move toward him.

"Hi," the young boy said, bright green eyes staring up at the sad man.

Cole blinked, staring down at Piper's youngest, Chris. The boy was watching him with large green eyes, a look on his face that showed more concern than a boy his age should have for a stranger. Cole had never given the boy much thought; the trouble that surrounded his brother had always held more of Cole's attention, and then when Phoebe had become pregnant his attention was on her.

But walking up to strangers like this could not be allowed to go without comment, "You shouldn't talk to strangers." the man stated, his gaze hard as he met suddenly stubborn young eyes. Cole did not waver, yet he felt impressed by the amount of stubbornness in the boy. He was definitely Piper's son.

"No you're not," the boy's chin set as he glared up, "I see you all the time."

This caused Cole's mouth to open, and then close as the words died on his tongue. None of the others had ever noticed him before.

"You looked sad," the boy added, his eyes grew soft as his mother's and aunts' eyes could when they were facing a troubled Innocent.

"And why," Cole said, trying to regain some dignity this five year old had stolen from him, "Do you think I'm sad?"

The boy shrugged his shoulders, "Don't know, you look it when you looked at us."

Again, Chris had surprised the man. The boy was more observant then any five year old should be, "Well, you shouldn't talk to people because of that. It's not safe."

Cole bit back a laugh as the boy gave him a look that practically screamed 'Oh Please'. The Halliwell pride was definitely strong in this one.

"Chris?" Piper's voice rang out as the mother noticed her baby's absence.

Cole rose from his perch. He could not afford to be found with the young Halliwell, especially by one overprotective mother who can make someone explode. On a whim, Cole leaned forward and ruffled Chris' hair, "See ya kid."

But a small hand stopped him from leaving. Looking down at the boy, Chris motioned for him to come closer. A small smile formed on Cole's lips as he leaned down to the kid's level, "Here," the boy held up a small green ball. When the man gave him a blank stare, Chris continued, "This is my favorite. It makes me happy, it make you happy."

The boy nodded as he dropped the ball into Cole's hand. He waited to make sure that Cole did not drop the small present; now sure that the man would keep it, Chris smiled before running toward his family. Cole watched the boy run over to his concerned mother, being enveloped in Piper's protective arms.

With that final look, Cole shimmered away, the ball still clutched in his hand.

* * *

Cole was not sure how it happened, but Chris had somehow wormed his way into being the demon's favorite of the next generation Halliwell's. The man watched as the boy grew up with the affection of a proud uncle. Since that day at the park, the two had had more conversations at random times. It did not escape Cole's notice that the boy was careful to never draw attention to the man whenever the rest of the family was around. Cole saw that the boy noticed him watching, but the boy made no mention of it to the others. Which was something that Cole was thankful for.

He was the first to notice the distance growing between father and son, Cole saw more of the pain the white-lighter's growing absence then the Halliwells, with the exception of Wyatt. Cole did not think he could dislike the pompous angel more than he had in the past, yet he was surprised that his dislike deepened each time.

But he did not step in, as his unwritten rule not to get too close held firm. He was tempted to beat some sense into that thick head. How could a man with such amazing children just forget one of them?

"Why do you follow us around," a thirteen year old Chris appeared behind the older half breed.

The boy's sudden appearance was taken in stride, "I needed a pastime and this beats macramé."

"I always thought you'd make a good cross dresser. Might be fun for you," the boy offered with a straight face.

God the kid had a smart mouth. Cole smirked; he would be amusing when he got older, "I'll give it some thought, Christine."

The yelling grew inside of the mansion, drawing their attention. The voice was garbled, but it was unmistakably Piper.

"Dick," Chris muttered as he brooded, his eyes never going to the house.

Even if Cole had not known that Leo was in there, he could have figured it out by that tone, "Yeah, he always is."

The two stood in silence as the screams of the enraged mother died down. Cole glanced at the boy, "Happy birthday, kid."

* * *

Cole finally broke his rule to avoid the family after Piper's death. He was met with distrust and hostility, shouldering a lot of the pent up anger of the family. He took it in stride, knowing that they needed to vent and he was a safe outlet.

But it was Chris who turned that around. Despite the devastation he lived through, he moved to Cole's defense. It had been touching; Cole had assumed that the boy would blame him the most. After all, the demon was a silent protector of the family, the one who should have seen the danger coming.

He was the one to get the younger cousins to call him "Uncle Cole", who got the husbands to trust him (with the exception of Leo). In fact, the boy seemed to take on a lot of responsibility in the family. Just as Prue would have done if she had been there, Chris swallowed his own pain for the family.

"You can talk to me," was thrown around by every adult in the family. Each of them meant well, but they did not understand that would be practically impossible for the boy. Eventually he started to avoid all of the sympathy, only going to his grandfather and Cole. Victor was the only one who get Chris to talk, for hours the two would simply talk about anything and everything.

Cole was the one who could find the boy anywhere he ran off too. He had stood beside the boy as one by one, the Charmed Ones fell. Cole offered his silent support as the cousins began to fall, as Victor was consumed by cancer, and was there when Wyatt had taken control of the world. They never talked about feelings, that was not their relationship. But Cole would give his life for the kid on an instant.

* * *

Cole slipped into the dank holding cells in the heart of the Underworld. A part of his mind was laughing at the cliché of the image; the grimy dungeon of an evil overlord, filled with suffering souls. He was surprised that Wyatt would be so uncreative. But while the Twice Blessed was powerful, he was not the smartest of Piper's boys.

While he thought this, Cole did not laugh. He knew from his own time as Source what would happen in these clammy cells. And at this moment, Chris was being given the "special treatment".

The ex-Source moved silently through the silent corridor, ducking into the darkness as guards marched pass. He reached the end of the corridor before he found the only enclosed cell in the dungeon. Though it looked like simple wood, Cole noticed the shifting magic running through it, spells built to contain a powerful witch.

His demon blood aloud the man to pass through the door into the filthy room. A figure laid in one of the farthest corners, curled into a ball. It was impossible for Cole to say if this was for warmth or because of pain. the air was cold in the room, but the stench of old blood hung in the air.

Cole looked at the prone figure in the dull light as he leaned agiasnt the door frame, "You look like crap," he stated.

"Thanks, Captain Obvious. I would never figure that out myself," Chris glared weakly at the half demon as the boy drew himself slowly up.

It took a lot of willpower not to rush to the boy's assistance. The once loose tee shirt was nothing but rags hanging on the boy. Although the light was meager, Cole could make out deep slashes that had caused those rags litter the visible skin. He knew that there would be many hidden behind what was left of the shirt and the darkness of the cage.

Without a word, Cole took the halfbreed's arm. The two shimmered out of Wyatt's little piece of hell.

* * *

Chris was the reason that Cole chose to work with the idiotic Resistance. As a Halliwell, even if he was the little brother of the Source of All Evil, Chris was expected to take charge of the movement against Wyatt. And the boy did well for being so young. He could be trusted to do what was needed, to look for allies in any location. Chris was not above allowing demons and dark witches help the movement.

The others who gained power in the organization were not in it for ideals, they were there for power. Every one of the big wigs in the Resistance were playing politics. Left to their own devices, the council would spend the rest of their short lives at each other's throats instead of helping innocents. Cole, along with people like Bianca, would be the first to go if Chris disappeared. It would not matter that there were few individuals inside the Resistance powerful enough to make a difference in the War.

Without Chris, none of the powerful witches and people like Cole would help. They could have as plush a position as Wyatt would allow in his reign. Or they could hide themselves away until Wyatt was overthrown or self destructed.

They could only hope that the young man would survive this family feud.

* * *

"I have an idea," Chris sat down across from Cole with the ever present Bianca sitting beside him.

There was a gleam in the boy's eye, something that Cole could not place. As always, the boy held himself confidently as he stared intensely at one of last pieces of family he had.

Cole took a sip of his drink, "Do you want a prize?"

Dark brows creased as the kid glared at that comeback, "This is serious."

"This is crazy," the Phoenix grumbled.

So the two were divided on the idea. That told Cole that this idea would be dangerous for Chris. The assassin raised few complaints about Chris' plans unless it was one of the few bad plans that came out of their esteemed leader or it was one of the boy's kamikaze strategies.

"I'm going to stop Wyatt from turning." Chris leaned forward, "I've been doing some research-"

"Interrogation and extortion more like,"

Chris ignored this as he continued on, "I've figured that whatever made Wyatt become this, thing, had to happen before I was born. I figure about a year or so before my birth would be a good place to start."

"What are you going to do exactly?"

The look that Cole had noticed grew in intensity, "I'm gonna go into the past and save him."

And now Cole knew what that look was. Hope. For the first time since this war between the brothers had started, Chris had hope of saving the world, his family, and most importantly, his brother. And Cole knew that the boy that was practically like a son to him would give his life if he had to, just to make this work. Nothing that anyone else said would stop him from going through with this plan. No Halliwell had ever been stopped from going through with their insane plans.

But then again, many of those plans had worked for the best.

"Tell me what you need."

* * *

It was only a few months after the boy left for the past that the Resistance fell apart around them. The council moved against people who they disliked first, throwing them onto the streets without the meager protection that the Resistance could offer. Bianca had been the first to be thrown to the wolves.

Cole had been enraged by the stupidity of the council. How did they think Chris would be safe from reprisals in the past when the only person who could find him was alone in Wyatt's territory? He had not waited for the idiots to exile him. Within hours of Bianca leaving, Cole had followed in order to help her disappear.

The two heard rumors of the deterioration of the Resistance as they ran from Wyatt's forces. It was only a matter of time before the house of cards fell around them. With one last attack, Wyatt had crushed the whole group. Both refugees had seen the results of the attack countries away from the headquarters. Wyatt had scattered the bodies as a warning against anyone going against his will.

The sight made Chris's last bit of family run even faster.

* * *

In his life, Cole had only found a handful of people he would give his life for. Oddly enough, most of those people were witches of the Warren line. So it seemed poetic that one of those witches would be the end of him.

"I would forgive your indiscretion," the curly haired Source stated blandly as he circled the battered half demon, "You are practically family, after all."

Cole said nothing as he watched Wyatt move.

"I will find him, Cole. You can't hide him forever."

Again, Wyatt was met with silence. His eyes blazed as he sent a telekinetic blast toward the former Source. The man smashed against the concrete wall hard enough to break pieces of the wall.

"Phoebe hit harder than that," Cole spat a bit of blood onto the floor. One of his already broken ribs must have punctured his lung, "Not even close to Piper, kiddo."

Mentioning one of his aunts was a bad move for most people dealing with Wyatt. But when Piper was mentioned, it was generally a death sentence. The Twice Blessed snarled as he threw Cole against the walls and floor savagely. He finally let the older man fall, broken and bleeding onto the ground.

Wyatt knelt beside his former uncle as an energy blast formed in his hand, "I will find my little brother. And with you gone, I can get Bianca to bring him back to me."

As Wyatt stood, letting the blast fly toward the broken demon, Cole closed his eyes. In that split second before death, Cole found he had no regret with how this ended.

* * *

Hope you enjoyed this little plot bunny. I figured that Cole had to get involved somehow. And of course, my loyal fans (ignores the sound of crickets from the empty fan booth) know I how much I like to kill off characters that I like, that or torture them. Watch out Christine, your time may be coming soon!


End file.
